Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley says he's preparing for a possible run for president.

The Democrat tells The Washington Post that he can't waste time waiting for former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton to decide whether she'll run in 2016. He says he needs to get started on the groundwork for a national campaign.

On Friday, O'Malley reported raising nearly $1.7 million last year with his political action committee, O' Say Can You See.

O'Malley says he's been speaking with foreign- and domestic-policy experts to flesh out his thinking about "a better way forward for our country." He has traveled to other states around the country over the last year to raise his profile, but he won't say when he'll decide on whether to launch a White House bid.